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Atmosphere and feature ratings above are based on Best Retreats research (November 2026). They will be updated if Sowa Nete submits its own information.

Sowa Nete: An In-Depth Review for Ayahuasca and Psilocybin Retreats in Santa Teresa, Costa Rica

Sowa Nete is a small retreat business founded by Argentine facilitator Mario Lopez Amaya and Spanish-born Carolina Ingrisch that runs Shipibo-style ayahuasca and psilocybin retreats for up to eight guests at rented villas about 20 minutes from Santa Teresa Beach on Costa Rica’s Nicoya Peninsula, and since 2026 also in Peru, according to its website and Retreat Guru page. Its five-day ayahuasca retreat costs $2,800, guests complete a health and medication form and a video call, and every visible review is five stars. Against that, no contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan is published, the facilitators are non-indigenous and list no named teachers, the hospital distance is not stated, its refund terms contradict each other, no legal entity is shown, and Costa Rica’s Health Ministry calls ayahuasca healing rituals unauthorized.

🎯 At a Glance

• Locations: Rented villas and apartments about 20 minutes from Santa Teresa Beach, Puntarenas, Costa Rica; one Retreat Guru page says Manzanillo Beach. Peru retreats in the Sacred Valley and with a Shipibo family near Pucallpa since 2026.
• Approach: Five-day group retreats with two ayahuasca ceremonies led by non-indigenous facilitators singing Shipibo icaros, plus hapé, sananga, yoga, breathwork, sound baths and massage; four-day psilocybin retreats; private retreats on request.
• Suitable For: Adults wanting a small, comfortable villa retreat, only after confirming contraindication screening, medical cover and the emergency plan in writing. Not suitable for people taking antidepressants or with heart or psychiatric conditions.
• Costs: $2,800 for five-day ayahuasca retreats and $2,300 for four-day psilocybin retreats, per its website; $3,800 for a one-on-one psilocybin retreat; Peru retreats $2,400 to $4,200. A 50% deposit is refundable minus fees more than 15 days out, per its FAQ, while Retreat Guru lists different terms.
• Overall Assessment: Small groups, comfortable villas, a health form and consistently warm reviews, offset by no published contraindications, medical staff or emergency plan, two medicines, contradictory refund terms and legal exposure in Costa Rica. Directory evaluation: C+.

💬 What Guests Are Saying

The positive picture. Reviewers praise personal attention from Mario and Carolina, a family feel, small groups, the readiness call, the food, the pool and air-conditioned rooms, the music and check-ins after the retreat.

The negative feedback. Within five-star reviews, one guest found the first ceremony overwhelming and frightening, one wished for more sensitivity to other participants’ energy, and one noted a facilitator was replaced by other musicians.

Who is writing the reviews. The Google rating is visible only through the operator’s own widget, and about half of the reviews shown date from around spring 2024; independent platforms hold three reviews. Our earlier profile attributed praise for the pool, air conditioning and beds to a 2022 Quora post; the same content appears in a 2024 AyaAdvisors review, and no Quora post was found. If you have attended, we encourage you to share your experience through our submission form.

🚩 Incident Report

We searched review platforms and English and Spanish-language news for reports involving Sowa Nete, Mario Lopez Amaya, Carolina Ingrisch, Dave Parry and Maestra Elisa.

• Deaths and serious injuries: None found.
• Sexual misconduct: No allegations found.
• Theft and fraud: None found.
• Legal action: None found.

Most other staff are named by first name only, which limits name checks. Our earlier profile found no incidents.

If you have experienced or witnessed an incident with this center, please report it confidentially.

🔍 Critical Notes

Screening and medical support. Its application form asks about physical and mental health conditions, medications, substance use and childhood adversity, followed by a video call, but names no exclusions such as antidepressants, heart conditions or psychosis. The team page lists facilitators, a chef, massage and holistic therapists and a photographer, with no medical staff, and no emergency protocol or hospital distance is published. The site says the medicines can help with anxiety and depression.

Who runs it. Mario, Shipibo name Inunkea, says he studied law in Argentina, began a shamanic path in Mexico in 2008, trained in the Shipibo tradition with master plant dietas and has 15 to 17 years of experience; his teachers are not named. Carolina, a certified yoga teacher who moved to Costa Rica in 2021, was described on an older partner page as supporting Mario in ceremonies and is now billed as co-facilitator. Musician Dave Parry is listed on Retreat Guru but not on the current team page. No company registration was found.

Legal context. Costa Rica’s Health Ministry warned in January 2025 that DMT is a controlled substance, that ayahuasca healing rituals are an unauthorized practice and that no group holds health permits for them, per its advisory and the Tico Times. Around 2024 it also advertised a plant-medicine retreat on Vancouver Island, Canada, with Kristyn Rose Yoga; whether it took place is not established.

Corrections to our earlier profile. The setting is a coastal beach area, not a mountain retreat. Current prices are $2,800 for ayahuasca and $2,300 for psilocybin, not $1,800; third-party listings showed about $1,870 in 2024. It also runs psilocybin and Peru retreats. Costa Rica’s rules are no longer unclear: the Health Ministry calls ayahuasca healing rituals unauthorized. The musician is listed as Dave Parry, not Dave Perry, and no source calls him world class. Seven-night retreats appear only in an undated directory, and the recipe of vine and chacruna simmered for hours has no surviving source; these remain unverified. Santa Teresa, Mario and Carolina, groups of up to eight, yoga, breathwork, the pre-ceremony diet, the pool and air conditioning, occasional mapacho, integration support and no incidents found are confirmed.

🆘 Screening & Mental Health Risks

A health and medication form is required, but no contraindications are published. ICEERS notes that ayahuasca’s MAOI component makes it dangerous with SSRIs and other serotonergic drugs and that it is contraindicated for people prone to psychosis. Psilocybin retreats run on separate dates. Never stop a psychiatric medication to qualify for a ceremony without your prescriber’s guidance.

🧪 Brew Substance

Ayahuasca of undisclosed source, plus psilocybin mushrooms on separate retreats, hapé, sananga and occasionally mapacho. Ayahuasca combines the Banisteriopsis caapi vine with a DMT-containing leaf such as chacruna, as Erowid explains.

📍 Location, Setting & Style

• Setting: Tropical jungle near the surf towns of Santa Teresa and Mal País at the tip of the Nicoya Peninsula.
• Rooms: A jungle villa with air conditioning and a pool, a luxury villa or a budget private apartment.
• Style: Shipibo-inspired ceremonies by Western facilitators, combined with yoga, breathwork, ice baths and beach outings.

Practical guidance: Fly to San José or Liberia and on to Cobano; listings disagree on whether airport pickup is included or guests meet the team in Santa Teresa.

Should You Book?

Only after confirming contraindication screening, medical cover, the emergency plan, the hospital distance and the refund terms in writing. Read our guide to verifying retreat facilitators.

The Team & Story

Its first dated review is from November 2023, its website was rebuilt in 2025 and it claims more than 50 retreats and 200 guests. Retreats are listed into January 2027, including a Peru Amazon retreat with a Shipibo healer named Maestra Elisa. We did not independently verify anyone’s training.

Prep & Integration Tips

Before you go: Disclose every medication and condition in writing and plan any change with your own doctor; the operator asks guests to follow a pre-ceremony diet. After you return: Integration circles and messages after the retreat are offered, with paid online coaching; arrange support from a qualified therapist at home. Our guide on how to research ayahuasca incidents can help you check any center.

Pros & Cons

Book Your Ceremony

Programs are listed on its website and Retreat Guru page. Best Retreats does not take bookings; learn more about our mission.

Last reviewed November 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified medical professional.